Sonko nears Royals return

17 October 2007 10:37

Reading central defender Ibrahima Sonko is close to a first-team return after several months out of action with a serious knee injury.
The 26-year-old Senegalese stopper has not featured since January, but has been building up to a return by featuring in several reserve games and a couple of friendly fixtures.
Royals boss Steve Coppell told the Evening Post: "These games are really proving to be valuable for us and will be to our advantage.
"He will be very much in contention for the first-team squad in the next week. Once he has played four or five games we will know he is almost there.
"He will have an impact when he comes back. He will bring a mentality which unites us all. He knows he has also got a lot to prove at Premier League level."
Sonko joined Reading in the summer of 2004 from Brentford and has gone on to make well over 100 appearances for the Berkshire club.